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History of Russia (06) by Bartlett, Roger [Paperback (2006)]
History of Russia (06) by Bartlett, Roger [Paperback (2006)]
Paperback
First published August 20, 2005
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
August 15, 2021
Il testo cerca di utilizzare un linguaggio comprensibile, ma pecca del fatto che riassume troppi eventi (molti dei quali complessi) in poche pagine e poche righe. Ciò crea un senso di smarrimento nel lettore che deve continuamente cercare approfondimenti per poter comprendere qualcosa
March 18, 2019
This compact book provides a broad overview of 1,000 years of Russian history. It covers various subjects, including politics, war, economics, art & literature, and societal trends. It's a scholarly work: very well-researched and thought out, dry in style. For a broad-based work, it felt fairly thorough, discussing certain topics at length. It's clear the author is speaking as a Western observer, but with that said, he maintains a neutral tone throughout (besides while discussing obvious atrocities). Worth reading for those who are into history and have some patience.
April 6, 2018
I perfectly understand that it is indeed hard to sum up the whole story of a nation in about 300 pages: many facts have to be just mentioned, others not even written. It's almost a crime to reduce the life of so many people in just a couple of lines.
But it's even a bigger crime making everything so confusing and mixed up that the only think I was thinking while reading it was: boring.
But it's even a bigger crime making everything so confusing and mixed up that the only think I was thinking while reading it was: boring.
January 30, 2022
letto per l'università, il libro utilizza un linguaggio molto comprensibile e chiaro, quindi la lettura è molto scorrevole; il problema che ho riscontrato è che spesso vengono riassunti troppi eventi, anche importanti, e questo rende difficile la comprensione se non si ha già una base di conoscenza sull'argomento.
June 17, 2018
A good summary of Russia's expansive history. This was easy to read and quite interesting. I'm fascinated by Russian culture and history, so this book was definitely worth reading.
May 7, 2022
Affronta in maniera approssimativa eventi periodizzanti e si prolissa su questioni irrilevanti. In breve: un libro di storia russa scritto da un inglese.
April 15, 2024
molto molto ma moooolto riassuntivo ++ letto solo le cose che mi servono per l'esame di storia russa
September 18, 2011
A History Russia gives a balanced, complete and yet compact history of Russia for the English speaking reader covering the period up to Putin's period in the Kremlin. If you want an introduction to Russian history and society from Kiev Rus to the Yeltsin era, this is a good choice. If the Putin years is essential to you, you have to look elsewhere. If you want a compact historic review and can live with this shortcoming, this can be a good choice.
In the following I will present some of the strengths and weeknesses I find in Barlett's book:
Generally Barlett delivers a very good historical review of Russia from the birth of the principality of Moscow about 1300, to the Khruchev years until 1964. Especially I appreciate his coverage of life at the countryside in Emperial Russia, a part of Russian hisotory and civilication that can hardly be overestimated, but never the less gets a limited coverage in histories of Russia.
On the other hand, in my opinion has some weeknesses that explaines why I have given only 4 stars despite the good coverage up to 1964 - 5 stars up to 1964 and 3 stars from 1964 to the present if you like.
In his coverage of the Brezhnev years, Bartlett's analysis of the political processes within the Kremlin has weeknesses. For instance Bartlett claims Brezhnev was, at least in the easrly years, a weeker leader than Khruschov and reversed the de-Staliniaztion under Khruschev. Compared to Khruschev this is true, but when comparing with his main rivals for the possition as a general secretary the neo-Stalinist Suslov and the anti Stalinist with "new great leader ambitions" Shelepin, it becomes clear that this analysis has limited relevance. Brezhnev won the battle of power because the Soviet leadership prefered a leader that was relatively week politically and moderate with regards to Stalinism.
Bartlett more or less totally ignores Yury Andropov. Though his period in office was limited to 15 months, Andropov and his period in office is associated with some important political issues that any good histroy of Russia must include. The fight against corruption and formalization of byreucratic processes, his appointment and promotion of Political figures as Gorbachev and Shevardnadze, that Andropov was the initiator of the perestroyka policy ("the chain of command is ruined and needs to be restored") and that one to a large degree can argue that Andopov's apointment was a result of that the army and KGB "took over" in Soviet politics after decades of economic and political mismanagement under Brezhnev (in contract to Ukraine, where one can argue that the same corrupt Dniepropetrovsk mafia stayd in charge until Kuchma left office).
I miss some coverage of the daily life of ordinary people in Soviet times, like he includes life on the country sides in Emperial Russia.
With structuring the chapters more along subjects in addition to the strict timeline (like Andrew Wilson does in his history of Ukraine by including chapters on mythologies of acient history, the economy, religion, foriegn policies etc) Bartlett could both make the book more colorful and made it easier for the reader to jump back and forth depending on what subject they wanted to read about. Including some anechdotical material about people's stories about their life or rememberance of certain time periods, episodes or phenomens (as for instance Anna Reid has included in her introduiction to Ukrainian history) could have made the same result.
In the following I will present some of the strengths and weeknesses I find in Barlett's book:
Generally Barlett delivers a very good historical review of Russia from the birth of the principality of Moscow about 1300, to the Khruchev years until 1964. Especially I appreciate his coverage of life at the countryside in Emperial Russia, a part of Russian hisotory and civilication that can hardly be overestimated, but never the less gets a limited coverage in histories of Russia.
On the other hand, in my opinion has some weeknesses that explaines why I have given only 4 stars despite the good coverage up to 1964 - 5 stars up to 1964 and 3 stars from 1964 to the present if you like.
In his coverage of the Brezhnev years, Bartlett's analysis of the political processes within the Kremlin has weeknesses. For instance Bartlett claims Brezhnev was, at least in the easrly years, a weeker leader than Khruschov and reversed the de-Staliniaztion under Khruschev. Compared to Khruschev this is true, but when comparing with his main rivals for the possition as a general secretary the neo-Stalinist Suslov and the anti Stalinist with "new great leader ambitions" Shelepin, it becomes clear that this analysis has limited relevance. Brezhnev won the battle of power because the Soviet leadership prefered a leader that was relatively week politically and moderate with regards to Stalinism.
Bartlett more or less totally ignores Yury Andropov. Though his period in office was limited to 15 months, Andropov and his period in office is associated with some important political issues that any good histroy of Russia must include. The fight against corruption and formalization of byreucratic processes, his appointment and promotion of Political figures as Gorbachev and Shevardnadze, that Andropov was the initiator of the perestroyka policy ("the chain of command is ruined and needs to be restored") and that one to a large degree can argue that Andopov's apointment was a result of that the army and KGB "took over" in Soviet politics after decades of economic and political mismanagement under Brezhnev (in contract to Ukraine, where one can argue that the same corrupt Dniepropetrovsk mafia stayd in charge until Kuchma left office).
I miss some coverage of the daily life of ordinary people in Soviet times, like he includes life on the country sides in Emperial Russia.
With structuring the chapters more along subjects in addition to the strict timeline (like Andrew Wilson does in his history of Ukraine by including chapters on mythologies of acient history, the economy, religion, foriegn policies etc) Bartlett could both make the book more colorful and made it easier for the reader to jump back and forth depending on what subject they wanted to read about. Including some anechdotical material about people's stories about their life or rememberance of certain time periods, episodes or phenomens (as for instance Anna Reid has included in her introduiction to Ukrainian history) could have made the same result.
July 23, 2016
This is for you, my dear friend Geeta,. You always complain I never leave a note about my readings: here you are. Be gentle though, I am not writing in my mother tongue!
Hard task for a book to contain the history of Russia, from the first population to the takeover of Putin passing through the westernisation policies of Peter the Great, the reforms of the XIX century, the foundation of URSS, the Stalin dictatorship, the Cold War and the final fall of communism. Bartlett proposes a very good fluent and clear introduction giving at the end an impressive bibliography from which to draw for further deepening of every chapter. I appreciated the definitive and clear statement about the major role and sacrifice of Russia in the defeat of the Nazism but if I did not give a 5th star is because I would expect, from such a scholar, at least a hint to all the systematic disinformation about URSS and its demonisation used for decades by the US, NATO and its "faithful" European partners, to carry out hypocritical and cynical policies only to benefit and justify a more and more aggressive new liberalism, economic lobbies and a very very low percentage of the world population. He published the book in 2005, I am sure in the light of the last decade events he would have mentioned something.
Hard task for a book to contain the history of Russia, from the first population to the takeover of Putin passing through the westernisation policies of Peter the Great, the reforms of the XIX century, the foundation of URSS, the Stalin dictatorship, the Cold War and the final fall of communism. Bartlett proposes a very good fluent and clear introduction giving at the end an impressive bibliography from which to draw for further deepening of every chapter. I appreciated the definitive and clear statement about the major role and sacrifice of Russia in the defeat of the Nazism but if I did not give a 5th star is because I would expect, from such a scholar, at least a hint to all the systematic disinformation about URSS and its demonisation used for decades by the US, NATO and its "faithful" European partners, to carry out hypocritical and cynical policies only to benefit and justify a more and more aggressive new liberalism, economic lobbies and a very very low percentage of the world population. He published the book in 2005, I am sure in the light of the last decade events he would have mentioned something.
January 19, 2012
A short book on a huge subject, so I hoping it would help me understand a few broad themes. A lot of big words that I didn't understand, and it put me right to sleep.
Want to read
March 28, 2018pg. 76
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews